Jamaican Curry Chicken
Jamaican Curry Chicken is one of my favorite easy dinner recipes. An easy comfort meal that requires little effort and bold flavors in the end. Pair this with your favorite rice and fresh veggies. Ready in 30 minutes!
Jamaican Curry Chicken has been one of my favorite go-to weekday chicken dinner ideas.
It’s fast, easy, and the flavor is unbeatable. This curry dish recipe is right here to help when you need a quick meal.
I’ve done trial and error to make this recipe easy, from preparing and cooking to what to serve in less than 30 minutes.
If you love quick chicken meals, then check out these other easy dinner recipes: Jamaican Stew Chicken and Pineapple Baked Chicken.
Chicken Curry or Curry Chicken ?!
Before I dive further into this post, I just want to mention how this dish can be somewhat controversial. But in a good way 🙂
There has always been a debate amongst Caribbean culture about where curry chicken originated, who has the best, and even the NAME is debatable.
Though very popular among Jamaicans, I must admit there is a difference between “chicken curry” and “curry chicken.”
Some differences include:
- the method of seasoning the chicken
- type of curry powder
- the use of garam masala
Did You Know? The use of curry and the creation of chicken curry can be traced back to Indian culture being introduced to Caribbean cuisine. During slavery days, indentured Indian workers were brought over and thus took their cultural teachings and cooking with them to the Caribbean.
Also, to throw into the mix of this debate, another name (or spelling, rather) used for the recipe is “curried chicken” (the English version, I think).
In the end, Curry Chicken is what I grew up hearing as a kid, so “imma stick beside him,” so to speak. 🙂
Ingredients To Use
Now, to get into this recipe.
I’ve played around with this recipe for so many years now, and I can confidently say it gets better and better with time.
- Chicken: chicken breast or thighs. The size of the chicken pieces is up to you.
- Seasoning: all-purpose seasoning, turmeric, cumin, curry powder, cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper
- Aromatics: thyme, escallion, scotch bonnet pepper
- Green seasoning marinade
- Potatoes
- Carrots
- Chicken Stock
- Oil
How to Make Jamaican Curry Chicken
The best thing about this recipe is how super easy it is to make.
Most of the legwork is cleaning and seasoning the chicken, but once that’s out of the way, all that’s left is cooking the chicken.
When seasoning your meat, I love to use a good blended seasoning mix.
It uses freshly chopped seasonings (so no chopping up your ingredients), then add any powdered seasonings to complete it.
- Prep your chicken by washing it in a bath of vinegar, lime juice, and water.
- Pat dry to remove excess water. Cut chicken into medium-sized pieces and set aside.
- In a large bowl, season chicken with green seasoning, cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper, curry powder (1tbsp), turmeric powder, all-purpose seasoning, pimento seeds, and cumin. Cover and marinate for 2-3 hours or overnight for the best flavors.
- On medium heat, add oil to a large pot. Add ½ tsp curry powder to the oil. Allow the curry to burn in the dutch pan, then add each piece of chicken.
- Turn the chicken after 3 minutes to sear the other side. Once seared on both sides, add leftover marinade and chicken stock/water. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes.
- Add potato, carrot, escallion, scotch bonnet pepper, and thyme to the chicken. Simmer for another 5-10 minutes or until carrots and potatoes are tender.
- Adjust to taste. Crush some potatoes to thicken the gravy.
- Remove escallion (if crushed whole) and thyme before serving. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
- Serve with the desired sides.
P.S. – You can chop fresh seasonings such as onion, garlic, scotch bonnet pepper, and any other seasonings you’d like to marinate your meat and add green seasoning.
Serving Suggestions
Jamaican Curry Chicken can be served for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
The sides you serve with this dish will determine whether you’re having breakfast or dinner.
Caribbean folks often enjoy dinner items as breakfast and vice versa.
However, you can enjoy this simple, tasty dish with any of the following:
- Fried Dumplings
- Boiled dumplings, green bananas, pumpkin, irish potatoes, etc.
- Rice dish
- Breadfruit (Fried or Roasted)
- Mashed Potatoes
- Roasted Vegetables
Tips For Making Curry Chicken
Here are some tips I’ve learned and implemented myself to enjoy the most authentic Jamaican Curry Chicken recipe you’ll ever have:
- Remove the seeds from scotch bonnet pepper to lower the spice levels of this dish.
- Green seasoning recipe here.
- If using a smaller pan, sear each piece of chicken; you can do this in batches to prevent overcrowding.
- You can add ½ cup of coconut milk to this recipe to thicken your gravy without mashing potatoes.
- You can add boiling water to this recipe to maintain cooking temperature. I like to pour some over the leftover marinade, then pour that over my chicken like stock water.
- Don’t throw out the leftover marinade from the pan your chicken was in. Pour chicken stock/water into the pan, then add the mixture to your chicken.
Storage Tips
Store your leftover curry chicken in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Package in meal prep containers for easy reheating later. I like to do this so we can grab and go for lunch or dinner.
Why Should You Make This Recipe?
If you are still not convinced why you should make this recipe, then here is a quick recap:
- Budget-Friendly: If you need a cheap dinner idea, this recipe is perfect for using simple staple pantry items.
- Easy to Make: Everything is a cinch after you’ve cleaned up the chicken.
- Quick Dinner Idea: Enjoy a delicious curry dinner in less than 30 minutes.
- Versatile Side Options: Enjoy with your favorite sides; mine are steamed rice and mashed potatoes.
- Perfect for Meal Prep: If you’re into meal prepping, this is perfect. You can make batches of this recipe for the week.
Other Curry Recipes:
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~ TheShyFoodBlogger
Jamaican Curry Chicken
Ingredients
- 2-3 lbs chicken thighs/breasts cut into medium-sized pieces
- 1 tbsp curry powder + ½ tsp for burning
- 1 tsp all-purpose seasoning
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper or jalapeño pepper
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp green seasoning blend recipe below
- 2 stalks escallion crushed or chopped
- 1 large potato diced
- 1 medium carrot chopped
- 1 scotch bonnet pepper
- ¾ cup chicken stock or water
- 2-3 sprigs of thyme
- 2 tbsp coconut oil or vegetable oil
Instructions
- Prep your chicken by washing it in a bath of vinegar, lime juice, and water.
- Pat dry to remove excess water. Cut chicken into medium-sized pieces and set aside.
- In a large bowl, season chicken with green seasoning, cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper, curry powder (1tbsp), turmeric powder, all-purpose seasoning, pimento seeds, and cumin. Cover and marinate for 2-3 hours or overnight for the best flavors.
- On medium heat, add oil to a large pot. Add ½ tsp curry powder to the oil. Allow the curry to burn in the dutch pan, then add each piece of chicken.
- Turn the chicken after 3 minutes to sear the other side. Once seared on both sides, add leftover marinade and chicken stock/water. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes.
- Add potato, carrot, escallion, scotch bonnet pepper, and thyme to the chicken. Simmer for another 5-10 minutes or until carrots and potatoes are tender.
- Adjust to taste. Crush some potatoes to thicken the gravy.
- Remove escallion(if crushed whole) and thyme before serving. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
- Serve with the desired sides.
Notes
Notes for Making Curry Chicken:
- Remove the seeds from scotch bonnet pepper to lower the spice levels of this dish.
- Green seasoning recipe here.
- If using a smaller pan, sear each piece of chicken; you can do this in batches to prevent overcrowding.
- You can add ½ cup of coconut milk to this recipe to thicken your gravy without mashing potatoes.
- You can add boiling water to this recipe to maintain cooking temperature. I like to pour some over the leftover marinade, then pour that over my chicken like stock water.
